Reporter: When her father was alive, paris jackson lived in a protective bubble peering out at the world from behind a mask as she discussed recently with oprah winfrey. I didn't get why I was wearing a mask but I understand it now why my dad would want our face to be covered like when we went out without him we wouldn't be recognized and we'd have a normal childhood. Reporter: When michael jackson died all the things he tried to protect his daughter from came rushing at her like a tsunami starting at his funeral. And I just want to say I love HIM SO MUCH.eporter: In the years after paris seemed to flourish in the spotlight. She built a twitter following of more than a million fans. She appeared on "ellen" to talk about her budding film career. How early on did you know you wanted to act? Well, when I was really little because my dad was in like the movie "moonwalker" and I knew he could sing but i didn't know he could act. Wow, I want to be just like him I thought. Reporter: Behind the scenes things were trickier. She attended a private school with other kids. While enjoying being a cheerleader she also told oprah she encountered bullying. People would try to bully you? Yes. Really? Really? How so? Well, at school and some people tried to cyberbully me. Do you sense people trying to use you? If I feel someone's being fake to me I would just like push away because there are kids at my school that talk so bad behind my back and they don't think that I can hear them. A lot of times I can hear them and a lot of times my friends tell me what they say. Reporter: Also at home with all that family in-fighting. There were possible signs that something was amiss. A radical change in her hairstyle of late, tabloid speculation about whether she was cutting herself and this strange video posted just days o. I need serious help. I'm crazy. I am crazy. Anyways -- what happened to paris, boom, it happened overnight. She went from one household and being secluded to a completely different household. Reporter: Being a teenager is tough under any circumstances. We can only imagine, though, how difficult it must be for this girl dealing with a complicated cocktail of grief, fame and family turmoil. For "good morning america," dan harris, abc news, new york.

This transcript has been automatically generated and may not be 100% accurate.

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